Lady Lions Start Three Guards, Bounce Back Against Knights

UNIVERSITY
PARK, Pa. - After falling on the road at Miami (Fla.) on Nov. 29, the Lady
Lions needed to find a way to get back on track against Fairleigh Dickinson and
with forward Mia Nickson needing the day off to rest a tweaked muscle, head
coach Coquese Washington decided to experiment with her starting lineup.

Washington
started guards Maggie Lucas, Alex Bentley and Dara Taylor for the first time
this season in an effort to bring more speed to her starting lineup.

In
Taylor's first career start at Penn State and her first time assuming the role
of full time point guard, the three guards combined for 45 of the team's 101
points in their 101-44 win in dominating fashion against the Knights.

By
combining Taylor's speed with that of Bentley, the Lady Lion offense is able to
push the tempo while having their weapons on the outside and in the paint,
something that would be very valuable to have when conference play begins in
January.

"I
want us to play faster," said Washington. "Dara is certainly the fastest and
speediest player on our team. The combination with her and Alex will allow us
to play faster and enable us to get some easy baskets."

With
the speed of Taylor and Bentley and the duo's ability to open things up in
transition, the difference was felt with both players on the floor for the
majority of the first half, helping Penn State take a 39 point lead into half
time.

"That
lineup definitely provides a lot of speed," said Lucas. "We can take huge
advantage of that, and I think we do a good job of that."

The
blowout win also featured career highs from junior forward Talia East and
freshman center Candice Agee. Both players posted career highs, including
Agee's eight points and nine rebounds. East tallied 11 points, added three
blocks and was one of five Lady Lions to get into double figures.

For
the two bigs, having the three guards and three leaders on the floor allowed
them to play more aggressive and more aware of where they should be on the
court.

"Our
guards are always telling us they're looking for us and they want to get us the
ball," said Agee. "So it's just being more aggressive and hungry for the ball
and getting the touches."

However,
the most encouraging statistic for Washington was the decrease in turnovers
compared to the high turnovers her team committed against Miami. The biggest
determinant in the team's turnover numbers has been their decision-making and
by having all three guards on the floor it gives the Lady Lions the ability to
play smarter and together.

"I
think we are getting better at turnovers," said Washington. "I think playing
smarter and playing within ourselves, we did a good job at that today and our
turnover numbers were lower because of that."

It was
Taylor's 15 point night that sparked the Lady Lions offensively. The biggest
thing her head coach took away from her first career start was her limited turnovers
- just two in the game - and her ability to spread the floor.

"I
was pleased with her turnover numbers," said Washington. "She is making good
decisions with the ball and she is a natural passer with great court vision. If
you run the floor open, she will get you the ball."

It
was a bounce back performance from a turnover standpoint for the Lady Lions,
something Taylor thought was important as one of the tougher tests of their
early season looms on Thursday against Connecticut.

"I
think it was really important (to limit turnovers)," said Taylor. "We had to
focus and execute on offense. A big part of that is taking to care of the ball and
getting more shot opportunities."